Daddy Knows Best
by Kara1626
Summary: How did Mike screw up? Let me count the ways. How mad is Briggs? Mike's about to find out. WARNING 1: Spoilers for "Hair of the Dog" WARNING 2: Spanking of an adult
1. Chapter 1

**WARNING 1: Spoilers for "Hair of the Dog" WARNING 2: Spanking of an adult**

* * *

Briggs walked forcefully down the stairs toward his truck. The peace he'd been able to find during his NA meeting was quickly bleeding out, and seething anger was taking its place. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and dialed. No answer. He dialed again. "Mike, pick up your damn phone," he growled through gritted teeth. No answer. He dialed again.

"What?" Mike answered.

"Where are you?"

"Out." Mike's own anger mirrored Briggs'.

"Get home. Now," Briggs ordered.

"Why?"

"Mike, I'm not in the mood. Get home," Briggs replied, his anger increasing.

"I'll be home when I'm home," Mike replied petulantly.

"You'll be home by the time I get there. You have 20 minutes," Briggs snapped, then abruptly ended the conversation. He shoved his phone back in his pocket, threw his bag in the back seat of the truck, got in and slammed the door. He took a few deep breaths to calm himself down enough to drive safely then headed home. "He'd better be there when I get there," he murmured to himself.

* * *

Mike stared at his phone for a moment, then angrily shoved it back in his pocket. "Who does he think he is?" he wondered out loud to no one in particular. "_Daddy knows best_._" _Johnny's words played over in his head as he walked up the beach toward home. Even in his anger, he knew better than to not make it home before Briggs did. He was in enough trouble already.

* * *

"Where's Mike?" Briggs snapped at Paige.

Paige gave him a "what the hell" look. "He's upstairs," she answered. "What's your problem?" she challenged.

"Don't worry about it," Briggs brushed her off and bounded up the stairs.

Mike had heard the door slam a few moments earlier and his heart had started beating faster. He heard Briggs coming up the steps, but no amount of deep breathing could help him calm down. He was pissed and scared, and he knew he had very good reasons for both.

Briggs barged into Mike's room, full steam. "There's this thing called knocking," Mike said sarcastically, reminding Briggs of his own words just a week earlier.

"Save it. With me," Briggs ordered. He turned around and walked out of the room. When he sensed Mike wasn't following him, he yelled "Mike, now!"

* * *

Johnny walked through the front door just in time to hear Briggs yell at Mike. Paige stood at the bottom of the steps looking very concerned.

"Johnny, what's going on?" she asked.

"I'd say Mike's about to get the whipping of his life," Johnny answered, a matching look of concern on his face.

"Why?" she asked, "what did he do?"

Johnny glanced over his shoulder as he headed up the stairs toward the commotion. "His list of crimes is pretty long this time, but I'd say at the top is probably punching Briggs in the middle of the FBI office."

"He what?!"

* * *

Upstairs, Johnny tried to head Briggs off at the pass. He grabbed his arm as the senior agent barreled past him. "Briggs, you don't want to do this right now."

"Stay out of it, Johnny."

"No," Johnny stood firm. "You don't want to do this. Go get yourself under control and deal with it later so you don't do something you regret."

"He went too far this time," Briggs replied, his eyes fiery and dangerous.

"Yeah, he screwed up, but you can deal with it later," Johnny tried again.

Briggs leveled him with a glare. "You don't even know the half of it," he growled. "Now get out of the way or you're next for disobeying a direct order." He pushed past Johnny then yelled again, "Mike!"

Mike appeared in the hallway, his jaw set. "Thanks for trying Johnny," he said as he walked by him toward the Com room.

"Johnny, get downstairs," Briggs ordered before he slammed the door shut. Johnny shook his head then headed downstairs to tell Paige what had happened.


	2. Chapter 2

**WARNING 1: Spoilers for "Hair of the Dog" WARNING 2: Spanking of an adult**

* * *

Briggs paced the width of the room, stopping every turn to glare angrily at Mike who glared right back. This continued for several minutes before Briggs finally stopped in front of Mike.

He took a deep breath, then launched into the lecture. "You made decisions you had no business making. You make promises to Bello you had no authority to make. You put Johnny in danger. You almost blew the entire op. And then you hit me in the middle of the office. Do you know you could have been suspended for that?" Mike recognized the question as rhetorical, and wisely kept quiet. "Then you follow me and stick your nose in my personal business. You know what all of that says to me, Mike?" Another rhetorical question. "That says that even after everything that's happened, you still don't trust me. Either that," he continued, "or you think you're better than I am."

Briggs returned to his pacing, but stopped after a few laps. "Which is it, Mike?"

Mike studied him for a moment, then looked away. His thoughts started racing. _"Damnit, he's right. I had no business getting Johnny involved. I should have talked to him before I made any promises to Bello. But it worked out fine. Ok, maybe not fine, but it worked out… _"You're right," he finally admitted, his shoulders sagging. "I got cocky. I'm…sorry."

"Well sorry's not good enough," Briggs responded angrily. "What the hell were you thinking?"

Mike swallowed hard. "I was thinking…" he trailed off quietly. Suddenly disgusted with himself, he shook his head and looked up at Briggs. "I don't know."

Briggs clenched his jaw. "That's a pretty shitty answer." Briggs took off his belt quickly, and doubled it. "Turn around," he ordered, "and lose the jeans."

Mike's eyes widened. "Briggs wait," he begged, taking a step back. "Just let me think for a second."

"You'll have plenty of time to think, Mike. We're going to be here a while. And we'll be here even longer if you don't obey me right now."

Mike looked at Briggs, shocked and worried, but Briggs wasn't backing down. So Mike slowly lowered his jeans, turned around and got into position, bent over the table. Briggs wasted no time delivering ten hard lashes that took Mike's breath away. He choked back the pain.

"What were you thinking?" Briggs asked again. "I didn't tell you to get up," he said sharply as Mike started to push himself off the table.

Mike swallowed hard, willing his voice to be steady. He chose his words carefully, given his present position. "I told you," he said quietly, "I got cocky. I was in with Bello, and it went to my head. I'm really sorry."

"Not yet you're not," Briggs answered, then brought the belt down ten more times. He didn't wait for Mike to catch his breath this time. "You got in with Bello because of _me_. I told you how to do it. I backed you. And then you turned around and threw it back in my face by telling him you could get the drugs, knowing full well you would need my help, but not bothering to talk to me about it first."

"What was I supposed to say?" Mike yelled, standing up and facing Briggs. "We were there. I had to say something."

"You should have told him that you'd talk to some people. Or that you would give it some thought. But you went and made a promise you had no way of keeping, and then you threw it on me to fix it," Briggs answered, still clearly angry.

"I'm sorry. What else do you want me to say?" Mike asked, tears suddenly welling up in his eyes, partly from the pain in his backside, and partly from frustration.

Briggs looked at him for a moment, then broke eye contact. "I don't want you to say anything," he answered quietly. "Get back over the table," he ordered, and Mike, for the first time, heard something other than anger in Briggs' voice. Was Briggs hurt by what Mike had done?

Mike turned around slowly and got back into position, bracing himself for the next round. It came hard and fast, letting Mike know that Briggs was still very unhappy with him.

"Why did you follow me?" Briggs asked. This time, the hurt was unmistakable. Mike struggled for what seemed like an eternity to come up with an acceptable answer to this question. "Why?" Briggs asked again, the anger creeping back in. When Mike still didn't answer, Briggs gave him ten more with the belt.

Mike caught his breath again, and finally spoke, hoping an answer – any answer – would make Briggs stop spanking him. "I was still pissed," he explained, wincing against the increasing pain and heat. "I wasn't thinking straight."

This time the belt landed twenty times.

"Don't lie to me, Mike!"

"I'm not…" he started to respond, his voice raspy, but he stopped. Yes, that was a lie. He breathed hard, searching for the truth. He searched too long and the belt fell ten more times. "Briggs, please," he begged.

"Answer me," Briggs ordered.

"I can't" Mike cried.

Briggs stared at the back of Mike's head, trying to wrap his mind around what was happening. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. Mike was keeping something from him. But what? He shook his head again. "_Focus, Paul. He could have gotten Johnny killed. He could have blown the whole case with Bello. Focus on that._

"Drop your shorts," he ordered.

"Briggs, you can't," Mike said in disbelief.

Briggs walked around to the other side of the table and bent over so that he and Mike were face to face. His expression had softened considerably. "Look, Mike," he began, "I know there's something going on that you're not allowed to tell me about. But in spite of whatever that is, the fact remains that I am your training officer, and it's my job to keep you safe. When you defy me, when you don't trust me – especially after everything I've done to try to earn your trust – and when you make decisions that are way above your pay grade and put other people in danger, I can't let that go. I can't protect you when you go off and do your own thing. And telling me about it later doesn't do either of us any good.

"Whatever you have going on with the Bureau is your business, and I trust that when the time is right, you'll tell me what it is. This isn't about that. This is about you getting ahead of yourself and putting people in danger. I can't allow that, and you know it. Am I pissed that you followed me? Yes, but I trust that you had a good reason. Am I pissed that you went off the reservation and made your own plans without consulting me on a case that I'm ultimately responsible for? You bet I am. _That's_ what this is about. Don't you ever do that again. Do you understand me?"

Mike swallowed the lump in his throat. "Yes sir," he whispered.

"Good," Briggs answered, still inches from Mike's face. "Now drop your shorts," he said, straightening up and walking back around the table. Mike hesitated, but obeyed. "Why am I about to whip your ass?"

"I got ahead of myself and made some pretty stupid moves with Bello, I didn't talk to you about the plan first, and I almost got Johnny killed," Mike answered quickly.

"And I'm going to make sure you never do it again," Briggs finished for him.

He put his hand on Mike's back then gave Mike the longest, hardest whipping he'd gotten since coming to Graceland – maybe even in his entire life. Mike tried to stifle a yell as the pain grew, but finally gave up, grateful that the Com room was mostly soundproof.

A few minutes later, Briggs put his hands on Mike's shoulders. "Look at me," he said gently. Mike obeyed, lifting his red, tear-stained face to meet Briggs' eyes. "I never want to have to do that again. From now on, you come to me first so I can protect you – and everyone else here. Understood?"

"Yes sir," Mike answered, his voice still thick with tears.

Briggs put his hand on the back of Mike's head, and looked at him kindly for a moment then he turned and walked toward the door.

"Briggs," Mike called, finally finding his voice, "I would tell you if I could."

Briggs gave Mike a half smile. "I know."

Mike nodded, relief washing over him. That was what he needed to hear.


	3. Chapter 3

**WARNING 1: Spoilers for "Hair of the Dog" WARNING 2: Spanking of an adult**

* * *

Mike lay on his bed, lost in thought in the darkened room. He thought about how he had allowed Bello to come between Briggs and himself. He thought about the moment he thought Johnny had been blown up. He thought about what Juan had told him about the Bureau's suspicions of Briggs. He thought about what he now knew…

A soft knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. He lay quietly, hoping whoever it was would think he was asleep and go away. No such luck. He heard the door open and close quietly, then felt the corner of his bed compress.

"You ok, Kid?" Charlie asked.

"I'm fine," Mike lied.

He felt Charlie shift, and then she was laying next to him, mirroring his position: on her stomach with her arms under her chin. "How bad was it?" she asked.

Mike closed his eyes for a moment, concentrating on the tingling heat he still felt on his backside and the backs of his thighs. "It was bad," he admitted.

"Johnny told me what happened," Charlie continued. "Did you really punch Briggs?"

"Yeah."

"In the middle of the FBI office?" she asked.

"Yeah. Not my smartest move, I guess."

Charlie laughed. "I wouldn't suggest repeating it, no. You did a good job though."

"What do you mean?" Mike asked, turning to look at her.

"He's got a pretty nice shiner," she grinned.

Mike buried his face in his arms again and groaned. "I just want this day to be over."

"Did you guys talk?" she asked after a while.

Mike rolled his eyes. "I'd say he did most of the talking. Or at least his belt did."

"That happens sometimes," Charlie said with another laugh. "You should talk to him," she said after another pause.

"What do I say? I already apologized about a dozen times," Mike replied glumly.

Charlie turned on her side to look at him. "Did you deserve what you got?" Mike nodded. "Are you sure?" Mike thought for a moment, then nodded again.

"Yeah," he sighed, "I deserved it."

"Then say that," Charlie prompted.

"Why?"

"Because he feels really bad about it, and I think you do too. You two need to clear the air, or things will just get weird between you."

Mike lay quietly for a while then rolled over on his side to face Charlie. "Where is he?" he asked.

"He's out at the fire pit on the beach," Charlie answered.

"How do you know?"

Charlie grinned. "That's where he always goes to get his head back on straight."

Mike considered that for a moment, then pushed himself up. "Thanks, Charlie."

"Any time," she answered with a smile.

* * *

Mike found Briggs exactly where Charlie said he would be. He paused for a long moment before he finally approached the older man. Briggs was swirling a beer that looked like it had been hanging out with him for a while. He looked up when he sensed he was no longer alone with his thoughts.

"Hey," he said quietly, "you ok?"

Mike hesitated before choosing his answer. "I don't exactly want to ride a horse at the moment, or sit on those rocks," he said lightly.

"Yeah," Briggs said, staring back at his beer, "I'm sorry I came down so hard on you."

"No," Mike answered, lowering himself gingerly onto the sand. "You were right, and I deserved what I got."

Briggs looked at him, surprised. "Really?" Mike nodded. "I'm not sure I agree."

"How come?"

Briggs sighed. "Because I know better than to punish you when I'm that angry. I should have waited until I had calmed down."

Mike chewed on his lip for a moment. "Yeah, probably," he agreed, "but I still deserved something. I screwed up, you did what you thought was best, and I'm pretty sure I'll live," he grinned.

"I'm sorry, Mike," Briggs said, still clearly upset with himself.

Mike looked at him for a moment. "I'm fine," he said finally. "Really."

The pair sat quietly, staring out at the ink black ocean, listening to the waves crash on the shore. Soon, another sound floated toward them – laughter. Before they knew it, Paige, Charlie, Johnny and Jakes descended on them, armed with cold beer and blankets.

"All right, you two," Paige said as she dropped onto the sand next to Mike, "that's enough of feeling sorry for yourselves. It's time to get to the part of the day where we celebrate that Johnny isn't shark food, and that Mike's not sitting in the FBI brig on assault charges."

"And that Paul isn't either," Charlie added with a laugh.

"Yeah, Levi, you gonna live?" Jakes asked, passing him a beer.

Mike caught Briggs' eye and smiled. "Yeah," he said finally, "I'm good."

Briggs returned his smile. "Let's get this party started!" he yelled, hoisting a fresh beer into the starry night sky. The others cheered, and soon the beach was filled with laughter and stories, as it always should be at the end of a long day.


End file.
